Press for making brick, &amp;c.



No. 747,327. PATENTED DEC. 15, 1903.. W. OWEN. PRESS FOR MAKING BRICK, &0.

APPLICATION FILED DBO. 5,;1902.

HO' MODEL. 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

No. 747,327.. PATENTED DEG. 15, 1903.

W. OWEN.

PRESS FOR MAKING BRICK, 8w.

AP P LIOATION FILED DBO. 5, 1902. I0 MODEL. I 3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

UNITED STATES Patented Decembert15, 1903.

' PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM OWEN, OF WOKING, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO WILLIAM JOSEPH POUPORE, OF MONTREAL, CANADA.

PRESS FOR MAKING BRICK, 80c.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 747,327, dated December 15, 1 Applioation filed December 5,1902. Serial No. 134,027. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM OwEN,-of Woking, in the county of Surrey, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Presses for Making Brick and other Articles from Plastic Material; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

In the drawings, Figure l is a front elevation of the press, showing the relative position of the various parts. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same looking at it from the top. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the revoluble table. Fig. at is a plan view of the stationary table. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the ratchet mechanism. Fig. 6 is an enlarged detail view of a portion of the cross-head and the rod m, showing its connection therewith.

Like letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the specification and drawings.

My invention has reference to a novel apparatus for making orpressing bricks or other articles, and is particularly applicable when the material to be used is in -a powdered, granular, or semidry condition and the article to be produced requires to be formed into shape by heavy pressure.

The object of my invention is to produce a machine simple in construction, effective in operation, and which will overcome the objections and difficulties which are found to exist with machines as heretofore constructed.

When powder or granular matter is employed to make bricks or other articles, it occupies in its loose condition a space equal to perhaps twice or thrice the size of the finished article, and it is found in ordinary practice that unless an enormous power is exerted the pressure is not fully and equally transmitted through the particles, so thata crust is formed in the outer part of the brick, while the middle is soft in only a partially-compressed condition. Now according to my invention I am enabled to thoroughly compress the articles throughout their mass with a. comparatively small expenditure of power. To accomplish this, I employ a circular table a, fitted on an iron support I), on which it can revolve horizontally, the table having a number of openings a close to its outer rim, into which metal molds are fixed, the number of said openings and molds being regulated by the number of finishing-plungers d, and two under the ejectlug-plungers g, which push the finished bricks through. apertures 71. in the fixed table 6 immediately below them. The ejecting-plungers g are heavier than the plungers f and are, as shown in Fig. 1, made of two difierent,

materials, the lower being metal and'the upper of any desired material which is rough cast. To fill the molds the materlal is conveyed through a tube or chute from hoppers or conveyors placed above the table. When this has been efiected, a turn of the table brings the molds under the first compressingplungers f, which are fixed to arms f, fitted to a piston-rod t', hereinafter to be described. Another turn of the table places the molds under the finishing-plungers d, fixed to the end of the piston-rods d, to be'hereinafter described. The last turn of the table places the molds under the ejecting plungers g, which are fixed to arms j, fitted to the same piston-rod as the first-mentioned compressing-plungers f. These ejecting-plungers g are forced downward, so as to push the molded brick through the molds and below the tablea. The empty molds then pass under the hopper or conveyors for the next oporation. It will. be seen, therefore, that each mold in its turn at each movement of the table goes through four stages above mentioned.

The compressing and ejecting plungers and thefinishing-plungers'are actuated by cylinders k and 1, respectively, suitably placed above'the table a, r The table is revolved by a ratchet-arm m and connecting-rod m, operated by the middle piston-rod t, the ratchetarm m engaging, through a pawl m thereon, the ratchet-disk o,'which is mounted on a shaft 10, fitted with a miter-wheel g, meshing with a corresponding miter-wheel r, fixed to the table a, so that upon each upstroke of the piston-rod the table is turned exactly the distance between the molds so as to bring them to the positions required for the successive stages of the operation. As clearly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, the rod m and consequently the arm m are normally held upward by means of a coiled spring 8, which surrounds the arm m between the upper collar s and the upper face of the cross-head o, the said spring being of sufiicient tension to just overcome the weight of the rod m and arm m, so as to hold it in a raised position. The cross-head 'v in descending slides a limited distance upon the rod mwithout moving it, and then abuts against the lower collar 8, moving the rod'm and arm m downward until the pawl m engages the proper tooth of the ratchet o, the pawl thus arresting the upward movement of the arm and rod, so that the table a will remain stationary both while the cross-head is thus descending and also while it is ascending to the point where the spring 8' is sufliciently compressed to overcome the resistance to the movement of the table, whereupon the further ascent of the rod m and arm m will cause the pawl m to rotate the ratchet 0, and thus in turn revolve the table a the proper distance. While the crosshead is descending the respective plungers are entering the table a, and as the same ascends the plungers are raised from engagement with the table a and are out of their respective molds when the operation of revolving the table takes place.

The operation of my machine may be briefly stated as follows: The plastic substance from which the bricks are to be made is fed into the molds,which are mounted in the openings 0 of the table a. A mold having received its charge is automatically turned so as to be directly below one of the pressure-plungers f. By admitting pressure into the cylinders la and Z all of the plungersf, g, and dare forced downward, and as there are alining openings 0 within the table at these plungers enter said openings. The material in the molds directly below the pressureplungers is thus compressed and the previously-formed bricks in the molds below the plungers g are ejected. During the descent of the plunger the table remains stationary, while the arm on carries the pawl m downward to engage a notch in the ratchet 0. As the plungers rise from the mold the spring 3' is compressed, at first without moving the table, but finally,as above described, motion is imparted to the arm m, which in turn operates the pawl m and ratchet 0, causing the table a to move the proper distance so that a mold containing an unfinished brick is in line with one of the finishing-plungers while the finished brick is in line with the ejecting-plunger.

By the construction shown the three above operations are all simultaneousthat is, the pressure-plungers are compressing in two molds,the finishing-plungers are compressing in two molds, and the ejecting-plungers are ejectingin two molds.

The compressing-plungers are employed for the purpose of compressing the loose material within the molds to about half the space,and so eliminating the greater portion of the air contained therein. The finishingplungers complete the operation of compressing the particles throughout the mass into a compact and dense agglomerate.

It will be seen that although I have described a machine with particular reference to the manufacture of bricks it can be advantageously employed for other purposes without departing from the nature of the invention. Similarly by increasing the number of plungers and molds or decreasing the same the capacity of the machine may be increased or decreased, as may be desired. The molds may also be so divided that more than one brick may be made in the mold at one time, the plungers in this case having recesses made in them to correspond with the divisions of the molds.

The machine is also suitable for compressing any kind of clay, plastic, granular, or similar materials into articles for which ordinary presses are at present used.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a press of the character described, the combination of a base, a centrally-arranged standard, a stationary table mounted thereon,a rotary table mounted upon said standard above the stationary table, both of said tables being provided with a series of apertures therethrough, a suitable framework supported by the base and overhanging the tables, a series of reciprocating rods mounted in said frame, and mechanism for rotating the rotary table operated while the plungers are being raised.

2. In a press of the character described, the combination of a base, a rotary table mounted thereon, a series of mold-apertures, a stationary table below said rotary table provided with a series of apertures, a frame mounted upon the base over said tables, mechanism for pressing the material within the apertures of the rotary table,mechanism for rotating the table after the pressing mechanism has been raised from the mold-apertures, and mechanism for ejecting the compressed material when the apertures of the rotary table are in alinement with the apertures of the stationary table.

3. In a press for making bricks, and other articles from plastic material,the combination of a frame,a rotary table mounted thereon having a series of mold-apertures, a cylinder, a piston-rod for the cylinder having a series of arms, compressing and ejecting plungers connected to the arms and arranged to simultaneously enter the mold-apertures and withdraw therefrom during the operation of the piston, finishing-plungers arranged to enter the mold-apertures and withdraw therefrom, cylinders for actuating the finishing-plungers,andmeans for actuating the rotary table, substantially as specified.

4. In a press for making bricks and other articles from plastic material,the combination of a frame, a rotary table mounted thereon having a series of mold-apertures, a cylinder, a piston-rod for the cylinder having a series of arms, compressingand ejecting plungers connected to the arms and arranged to simultaneously enter the mold-apertures andwithdraw therefrom during the operation of the piston, finishing-plungers arranged to enter the mold-apertu res and withdraw therefrom, cylinders for actuating the finishingplungers,means for actuating the rotary table,and a stationary table having apertures therein with which register the apertures of the rotary table when alining with the ejecting-plungers, substantially as specified.

5. In a press of the character described, the combination of a base, a centrally-arranged standard, a stationarily-arranged table provided with apertures therethrough, mounted upon said standard, a' rotary table provided with apertures to receive molds rotatably mounted upon said standard,a suitable framework disposed above said tables, pressurecylinders mounted upon said framework, pressing and ejecting mechanism, and mechanism for rotating the rotary table operated by one of said cylinders and the finishing mechanism operated by the other cylinders.

6. In a press of the character described,the combination of a base, a stationary table provided with openings to allow the finished brick to pass therethrough, a rotary table above said stationary. table provided with a series of mold-openings, a suitable framework disposed above said tables, pressure-cylinders carried by the said framework one centrally and one upon each side thereof, finishing and ejecting mechanism, and mechanism for rotating the rotary table operated by the central pressure-cylinder,and finishing-plungers operated by the remaining pressure-cylinders.

- Toronto, November 26, 1902.

, WILLIAM OWEN.

In presence of- C. H. RICHES, L. F. BROOK. 

